3, 4, 5… Oh sorry! I was just counting ALL of the skills and standards that teachers are required to teach each year. There’s simply not enough time for everything! And I bet you can guess the ONE thing that almost always gets left out. Grammar! It’s so hard to squeeze in grammar practice between rigorous comprehension lessons, small groups, and writing conferences. But I have found one way to ensure grammar practice is being checked off the list – playing grammar games! Check out these grammar games you just have to try!
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The thing about finding extra time to squeeze more and more in is that it never happens. There’s simply not enough time in the day. So instead, look at the schedule you have already created. Where, in THAT schedule, can you include grammar practice so you’re not trying to add in extra time? For me, that was always during my reading and writing centers. I ensured that each week at least one center was dedicated to grammar so I knew it was being covered. Some of the games below can be used in centers and some whole group!
Grammar Game #1: 4 Corners
The great thing about 4 corners is that it’s extremely low prep and helps get your students up and moving! Just in case you don’t know how to play – all you need is 4 pieces of paper and a random book. On each of the pieces of paper, write one part of speech you need to review. Hang each piece of paper in one of the 4 corners of the room. Then using the book, read aloud a random sentence. In the sentence, highlight one word and ask the students to identify which part of speech that word is. Students think and then move to the corner that represents the answer they choose.
Take time to have students turn and talk to discuss and justify their answer. Then discuss as a class. Have students move back to their seats and repeat until time is up!
A quick trick to ensure students aren’t just following their friends or the masses – have them write their answers secretly on a whiteboard or scrap piece of paper and then they MUST head to the corner that matches what they wrote!
Grammar Game #2: Roll & Solve
This was probably my students’ favorite game of all! They begged to play roll and solve. The best thing about this grammar game is that it can be played independently or with a partner. This game does take a bit more prep for printing the game (creating it as well) and finding dice and game pieces. But the games themselves and just print-and-go! No crazy small game cards or pieces to cut out. Definitely my type of game! 
To play, students roll two dice and find the matching coordinate. Inside the box will be a word or sentence. Based on the topic of the game (nouns, verbs, etc) students will answer the question and check to see if they are correct. For example, one game’s topic could be ‘Is this a noun?’ So in each box, there’s a word. Some words are nouns and some are not. Students decide yes or no! If correct, they cover that space and move on.
When playing independently, students simply set a goal and try to reach their goal within the given timeframe. If playing with a partner, students take turns and each uses a different type or color of a game piece to claim their spots. The person with the most spots claimed at the end of the time is the winner!
If you don’t want to create your own roll and solve grammar games, then you can snag mine in my store! I just know your students will love them!
Grammar Game #3: Tic Tac Toe
Ok, who doesn’t love a good old-fashioned game of Tic Tac Toe!? One of the best tips another teacher ever gave me was to use games students already know how to play and make them academic. Tic Tac Toe is a perfect example of that! And again, this game takes almost zero prep! To create the game, simply take a piece of paper and draw out the 9-sectioned Tic Tac Toe game. In each of the sections, write a different part of speech. (some can be repeated if necessary). Then just copy the game as needed! It takes 2 minutes tops!
To play the game, put students into partners. Decide who is X’s and who is O’s. On their turn, students choose a section of the board. They then must identify an example of that part of speech in a book. If correct, they can place their letter. If not, they leave it blank. Super easy! The one thing about this grammar game is that it does go by super fast, but what I’ve learned is that once students see the board game, they can recreate it themselves! So students simply redraw the game on scrap paper and keep playing until time is up!
Check out these other ways to squeeze in some extra grammar practice!
Grammar Game #4: Scavenger Hunt
This can easily be a fun, fast-paced whole group game or simply an independent center. Either way, students love doing scavenger hunts! No need to purchase anything for this 
game. All you need is to create a simple checklist! To create the checklist, write in the different parts of speech on the left. On the right, leave room for students to place a check that they found each part of speech as well as room for them to write out what they found. You can even leave space for them to justify how they know the word they found is in fact that specific part of speech!
To play whole group, you can have students work in a team or individually. Call out a part of speech and have students scavenge through a book to find an example. The first to find one and write it down wins a point! (points work best in teams) When playing independently, it simply turns into a completion activity.
Grammar Game #5: Build a Sentence
This is a great group center activity or whole group game! Students use index cards and work together to create elaborate sentences using as many parts of speech as they can! To prep, simply write different parts of speech on index cards (you’ll want to make baggies for each group you have participating). When students are playing, they pass out one card to each player. Each student reads his/her card and is responsible for contributing that part of speech to the sentence. The team works together to create a fun, elaborate sentence using all of the cards/parts of speech.
Want a fun spin on the game? When students or groups present their sentences to the class, they can receive a point for each part of speech used correctly. Play a few rounds and see which team received the most points!
Grammar Game #6: Memory
Again with the classics! If it works, no need to fix it. Memory is a perfect example of this! This game does take a bit more prep but it’s as easy as writing on cards! To create a deck of grammar memory cards, simply write a part of speech on the left of an index card and an example of that part of speech on the right. When done creating the set, cut each card in 1/2. This ensures you have a matching part of speech for each example. No need to explain how to play! Students can play in groups or even independently. Make sure there’s an answer key to check!
I hope you found a new grammar game to try out! Make sure to head back up and grab my grammar roll and solve games for a ready-to-print and use game!
